ESR dose response of Al center measured in quartz samples from the Yellow River (China): Implications for the dating of Upper Pleistocene sediment

The ESR dating method requires to describe the evolution of the ESR signal intensities vs. increasing gamma doses, then to extrapolate the equivalent dose of radiation received by the sample since its deposition using mathematical fitting. The function classically used to describe the growth curves of ESR aluminium signal in quartz was recently discussed and challenged for Lower Pleistocene sediments. In the present work, some alluvial sediments sampled in Upper Pleistocene fluvial terraces of the Yellow River system (China) permit us to test the application of another extrapolation function (linear + exponential) recently proposed for Lower Pleistocene sediments. The equivalent doses obtained here for the recent deposits of the Yellow River system and the corresponding ages are promising and indicate the potential of ESR to date quartz deposits from Upper Pleistocene times.     

From the savage to the imperial Indian: Identity quests in contemporary Mexico

This article explores some of the major themes through which a specific quest of identity in contemporary Mexico is undertaken. This quest of “mexicanhood” is based on a constant demand for symbols and shows the importance of Aztec culture as a pool of concepts from which a new philosophy keeps emerging. The increasing resurrection of the “Imperial Indian” has been supported by the arrival of messiahs, guides and interpreters of “pre‐hispanic thought”. The use of Zocaló (Mexico City Centre) plays a crucial part in this quest.     

Pluralizing Reason

Book reviewed in this article:
Dipesh Chakrabarty, Provincializing Europe: Postcolonial Thought and Historical Difference     

Seismic uplift of the harbour of ancient Aigeira, Central Greece

The Mavra Litharia cove, between Akrata and Derveni, in the North Peloponnesian coast (Central Greece), has been identified as the site of the harbour of the Hellenistic Aigeira, one of the very few natural harbours along the uplifting, fault-controlled North Peloponnesian coast.
Geomorphological, marine biological and archaeological data as well as radiocarbon dating of marine fossils testify to a 2m relative land uplift since Hellenistic times (around 2000 years bp), part of which (1 m at least) was probably seismic, dated to the Byzantine period (AD 900–1200). This palaeoseismic event, as well as others deduced from archaeological data, are not included in the historical seismology records, but had probably dramatic impacts on the economic and cultural history of ancient Aigeira.
The amplitude of uplift at Mavra Litharia is of the same order of magnitude as submersion dominating the Aegean and, with the exception of the arc, the higher Holocene uplift rate recorded in this area and the surrounding regions. This result is consistent with the Quaternary uplift history of North Peloponnesus.     

Pre-Columbian congenital syphilis from the late antiquity in France

Today, exactly 500 years after the discovery of America, there is still a lot of controversy about the history of syphilis in Europe, especially about the Columbian and pre-Columbian hypotheses. This paper presents evidence for the presence of venereal treponematosis in the late Antiquity in France. The case that we examined comes from the necropolis of Costebelle (3rd-5th centuries AD; Hyères, Var, France). Grave no. 1 contained the well-preserved skeleton of a relatively old woman with the skeletal remains of an approximately 7-month-old fetus in her pelvic cavity. The osseous lesions of the fetal remains can be described in four groups: periosteal appositions on the skull vault (frontal and parietal); signs of periostitis on the long bones (bilateral cortical irregularities, predominantly on the left side, which affect first of all tibiae, femora, fibulae, radii and humeri, particularly in the metaphyseal region); some infraperiosteal detachment reminiscent of an infraperiosteal haematoma surrounding the distal extremity of the left forearm and the left hand; and finally, the irregular lesions of the humeral distal and proximal tibial metaphyses reminded us radiologically of Wimberger's signs. The most probable diagnosis of all the lesions mentioned above is that of a precocious congenital syphilis. This case consists of an argument against the epidemiological theories about the migration of Treponema pallidum from the New World back to the Old World starting at the end of the 15th century.     

A multidisciplinary approach to reconstructing Late Glacial and Early Holocene landscapes

Understanding palaeotopographical variability forms the basis for understanding prehistoric societies. Alluvial and lacustrine environments, in particular, are key areas with both a high archaeological and palaeoecological potential. However, the often deep stratification of these sites, the high water table and the complex sedimentological variations can hamper a detailed reconstruction of the spatial relationship between prehistoric settlement and their environment. Combining different remote and proximal sensing techniques and coring data, can offer detailed insight into such landscapes. More specifically, the integration of mobile geophysical methods allows the collection of unprecedented continuous information on large-scale palaeolandscape variability. In this study we present a combined approach in order to map and model prehistoric landscapes and river systems in and around a Late Glacial palaeolake in north-western Belgium. Based on filtered and unfiltered digital elevation models, a survey area of 60 ha was selected, in which detailed mobile multi-receiver electromagnetic induction survey was conducted. The results allowed for the delineation of palaeochannels in the area and enabled modelling the depth of these features in the survey area, providing insight into their flow characteristics. ¹⁴C sampling enabled the dating of the evolving river system to the transition between the Late Glacial and the Early Holocene. Through additional coring, this river system could be traced further through the palaeolake area. Based on these results a detailed reconstruction was made of the palaeotopography that harboured the Final Palaeolithic and Early Mesolithic occupation of the study site.